The term “domestic violence” typically conjures images of physical assaults perpetrated by men against women and children in the home. But beneath the tip of the iceberg of severe violence lie a myriad…

Protection orders form a central plank of the various state and territory governments’ response to domestic violence. First introduced in New South Wales in the 1980s and known by a different names across…

Women who’ve lost touch with family and friends, or have no access to funds, turn to emergency accommodation in women’s refuges.
Shutterstock
August 6, 2014

“Why doesn’t she just leave?” is the common question people ask when trying to understand domestic violence. The answer is far from straightforward. Central to domestic violence is an ongoing pattern of…

Debate surrounding the law’s response to lethal domestic violence has led to significant law reform activity over the last 20 years.
AAP/Dave Hunt
August 5, 2014

The law’s response to lethal domestic violence in Australia raises complex issues. It requires a delicate balance to be struck between ensuring a just response to those who kill in response to prolonged…

Until recently, violence against women was not reported prominently or consistently by mainstream media. Why not?
Dave Malkoff
August 4, 2014

Did the grim story of dapper real estate agent Gerard Baden-Clay’s calculated murder of his wife Allison in April 2012, played out recently in a Brisbane court with a life sentence, make you feel afraid…

Once a hidden crime, domestic violence has in recent years emerged as a mainstream criminal justice issue in Australia. Cases such as Queensland man Gerard Baden-Clay’s murder of his wife Allison and the…